Roomies
by heavySITUATIONS
Summary: Takeru moves in with Kari, an extremely odd, extremely annoying college girl who is not what she seems...
1. Girlie Roomates! Who needs them?

Just to tell you, Kari and Takeru don't know each other in this fic until the actual confrontation…

I never really liked the show much expect for the characters…

Please don't hate me…

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

CHAPTER ONE: Girlie Roomates! Who needs 'em?

  
  
Takeru cursed silently as the trunk of his borrowed car slammed painfully onto his fingers. He shifted the box in his arms to one hand, dropping it gently to the ground just long enough to free his aching digits. He flexed his fingers briefly before picking up the heavy box once again.   
  
Takeru moved quickly to the front of the building. He hadn't seen his new apartment before, and it was ritzier than he'd expected from the amount of rent he was paying. When he'd answered the ad for the apartment, all he'd cared about was getting away from his own home long enough to straighten out his life. He hadn't cared that he was probably moving into a seedy dump, or the fact that his roommate was a college girl. But this place was far from a dump.   
  
To the contrary, the building in front of him was in one of the best neighborhoods in Tokyo, and it came with its own bright red carpet and canopied front door. Tekeru was lightly impressed by the professional appearance of the doorman zealously guarding the entrance. The big footman immediately blocked Takeru's path to the building. "Can I help you, sir?" the footman asked politely but forcefully.   
  
Takeru hesitated. He wasn't positive that he even had the right address. Surely a place like this would cost much more than he'd be contributing each month? "Yeah, I just moved in. Name's Takeru Takaishi." Though he was uncertain on the inside, his stern posture and expression gave nothing away. "My room mate's name is." He paused, momentarily forgetting that appellation of his as of yet unseen cohabitor. Finally, with a great amount of effort, he recalled, "Hikari Kamiya."   
  
The doorman's face brightened considerably. "Ah, Miss Kari! Why didn't you say so in the first place?" He pulled a tiny radio from his belt and began speaking swiftly into it. "Seamus, come in Seamus." A second later, a youthful voice replied gruffly, "Yeah? What do you need, Larry?"   
  
Larry grinned at the impatient Takeru. "Miss Kari's new fellow is here. Send somebody out for his luggage, will you?" The second man's voice came back, noticeably colder. "Sure thing. I'll be right there." Takeru dismissed the coldness, deciding that it must have been an effect of the radio. Instead, he said with as much politeness as he was capable of, "That's quite all right. I can manage on my own." Larry clapped Takeru on the back. "We're always happy to help a friend of Miss Kari's."   
  
As a young man with sandy brown hair arrived, a scowl on his face, Larry called, "Let me know if you need anything else." Kari hesitated a second before asking, "Do you know where I can find a good motorcycle mechanic nearby?" Larry shook his head mutely, but Takeru heard the youth mutter under his breath, "It figures. The guy's a biker, too. Just what I needed."   
  
Takeru pretended that he hadn't heard as the young man loaded his suitcases onto a trolley. Seamus led him up the elevator to the fifth story of the building. He handed the trolley to Takeru and unlocked the door. He slammed the key into Takeru's palm with a glare. "Don't go getting any ideas about Miss Kari," he growled.   
  
Takeru blinked, but his stony face didn't give away the surprise he was feeling inside as the boy stalked off angrily. Just what I needed, he thought angrily to himself. My roommate must be a real flirt if she's got that boy strung out on a plate like this. Takeru shrugged dismissively as he stepped into his new home. As long as the boy didn't affect his life in any way, he didn't care.   
  
He slid into through the door, shutting it firmly behind him. His mouth fell open. Takeru didn't often use words like 'beautiful' or 'lovely', but both adjectives sprang immediately to his mind as he gazed at the area around him.   
  
The place was richly decorated in crèmes, gold and crystal. The carpet and comfortable-looking couch were both a delicate, matching ivory. Expensive mahogany furniture was scattered tastefully around the room. Priceless paintings and antique crystal and Ming dynasty vases decorated the tables. Over the mantle of the honest-to-goodness fireplace was a huge painting in a guilt frame.   
  
Takeru eased forward, attention naturally caught by the landscape in front of him. Part of the painting consisted of a golden ocean in which graceful, dolphin-like creatures frolicked. On a gold-tinted beach, a slender brunette girl gazed past the setting sun at an ethereal city situated across a harbor.   
  
Takeru peered closely at both the girl and the city. He felt as though there was some hidden detail in the painting that he was missing and had to see. He didn't know what he was looking for, but he knew beyond a doubt that the detail was vitally important. He took another step forward, and he could have sworn that he heard the sound of the waves beating against the shore. Salt flavored the air around him. 

The smells and sounds of the golden sea were torn cruelly from him as a key turned in the lock of the front door. Takeru spun, his heart still beating wildly, as a slight young woman stepped quietly through the door. An equally tiny grey cat followed so closely on her heels that Takeru half-expected the girl to trip over it. Miraculously, the girl managed to slip, unharmed, through the door.

The girl seemed unaware of his presence. The cat, however, saw him standing by the fireplace, and gave a quick, angry meow. The girl glanced up and smiled warmly at Takeru. "Oh, hello," she greeted in a voice as rich as butter. "You must be Takeru. I'm Kari."

She held out a hand and started to come forward, but the cat launched its fangs into her ankle. The girl yelped and shook her leg to dislodge it. "Nico!" she yelled as the cat came free and landed, hissing furiously, several feet away. "What's come over you?" She glared at the cat, which turned and quickly fled from the room. Kari followed it into a bright, airy kitchen. The cat leapt onto the counter and then jumped from an open window. Kari leaned out the window, calling her cat's name as it ran down the fire escape.

  
  
Kari sighed and started to pull herself back inside. She grunted slightly as she smacked her head against the top of the windowsill. "Stupid cat," she muttered, rubbing her head with a grimace. "He's not usually like this," she apologized. Takeru shrugged, not caring in the least about the white devil-cat. 

The girl ignored his rudeness, offering her hand once more. He just stared at her, and she slowly dropped the proffered limb. "Anyway," she smiled, "Welcome to the household. Your room is down that hallway," she pointed down a long corridor set off from the main living area. "It has its own bathroom, of course. My bedroom is on the other side of yours, so we share a balcony. I'll try to keep my noise down, but sometimes my rowdy friends will drop by without notice. Now that you're living here, I've told them to call first, but there isn't really a guarantee that they'll remember. I apologize in advance for anything they might do. They will, at least, stay out of your room. You are welcome to have anybody over at anytime. If it's possible, you should let me know if you're having large groups beforehand, so I can clear out and give you your privacy."

  
  
When he nodded coldly, she continued, "Rent is due every second Tuesday. Unless either of us mention something specific beforehand, anything in the fridge is free game." She smiled up into his cold, blue eyes, and Takeru gazed silently down at her as he looked at her closely for the first time. Her face was pale, but her large brown eyes sparkled as luminously as her mega-watt smile. Silky, brown hair framed her lovely, delicate features. She was very slender and very short. Even in high heels, he doubted that the top of her head would reach his shoulders.   
  
He blinked suddenly, aware that he'd been staring. The girl continued to smile, oblivious of the increased coolness in his expression. "Okay, then," she chirped. "I think that covers everything. I won't be home very often, since I have photo shoots all over the world and my schedule is pretty erratic. I'm a model," she explained. "I fly out at odd hours, but it pays the bills."   
  
He shook his head slightly, grateful that this too-sunny chatterbox wouldn't be home all the time. "May I ask why you wanted a roommate in the first place? You obviously don't need me for financial reasons." 

The girl laughed musically. "Oh, I'm loaded," she said casually. "I've been acting since I was five, so I've got tons of money. I just didn't want the apartment sitting empty all the time. I may never see you, but its nice to know that somebody besides Nico and I will be making use of it."

He groaned, thinking that this girl was going to be a nuisance. "The cleaning lady comes every Thursday, but she doesn't like to work with people around. She's usually finished by three, so you'll have to clear out until then. The laundry lady comes on Wednesdays. All you have to do is pile your dirty clothes in a mound on your bedroom floor, and she'll take care of it."

Spoiled brat, thought Takeru. "Will I be expected to pay for these services?" he asked coldly. The girl waved a negligent hand. "Oh, no," she said airily. "Their salaries come out of my royalties. Just be grateful that I won't be responsible for the housework. I'm a pig." He glared at her, but she just laughed. "You know what they say: 'never toss a jellied doughnut under the sand."

She grinned at him, not registering his astonished stare. Was she nuts, or was she just even more air-headed then he'd thought? "Hey, do you need help unpacking?" she asked suddenly. He shook his head violently. He definitely did not want this ditzy princess touching his things. "Okay, I'll see you later, then!"

She grabbed a jacket from the coat hanger and bounced out the door. Takeru shook his head again and started to unpack.

I know they're really OC… 

Nice purple button ei?! 


	2. Bars and Brawls

I'm soo happy! I can't believe you guys gave me reviews! Thank you so much! Sorry I couldn't personally thank all of you and I'm also sorry this chapter took too long…

Oh.. oh.. I'm so sorry! I know they're all ooc… sorry, can't change it though…

I got this all in my head but it's getting kinda messy… 

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon… I'm a 14 year old for crying out loud!

CHAPTER TWO: Bars and Brawls

Takeru stretched lazily as he gathered his razor and other bathing utensils. He glanced around his spotless room, satisfied with its appearance. His bedroom was decorated as carefully as the rest of the place. In the center, a four-poster bed with a black bedspread covered one wall. The rest of his furniture consisted of a man-sized cherry wood dresser. The wall opposite the bed had a small television mounted on a low table. His room even contained an expensive desk, complete with a computer. In spite of the fact that a female had decorated the room, it was distinctly masculine. He couldn't have designed it better himself.

Smiling slightly, he headed for the connecting bathroom. The room was covered in dark blue tile and wallpaper, and it included a Jacuzzi tub. Takeru still couldn't believe his luck. This place was a dream come true.

As the front door slammed loudly, Tekeru groaned. Almost a dream, he thought sourly. His roommate was shaping up to be a complete pain. He'd lived with the girl for only two short weeks, and already he was becoming profoundly sick of her. She came in at all hours, waking him up each time, though she obviously tried to be quiet. She left her things everywhere, and she never remembered that not everything in the apartment was hers. He'd be having a peaceful breakfast by himself, and she'd walk up and literally steal the food from his plate. She was sickeningly happy all of the time, and she constantly spouted off odd sayings that didn't make the slightest bit of sense.   
  
On top of all that, her stupid cat seemed to have it out for him. Every time Takeru entered a room already occupied by the cat, the beast would snarl and leap for his throat. Takeru knew that there was pure hatred in the animal's mad grey eyes. The cat's mistress never noticed, of course. She continued to smile and laugh, never registering his attempt at freezing her out. She was, quite simply, driving him nuts. He'd never been around any one like her, and he wasn't sure that he liked her type. She was just too happy. 

Takeru hurried to get his bath, wanting to be out of the house by the time the girl got around to pestering him. As he came out of the bathroom, dressed only in his robe, the brunette whirlwind ran through the doorway. She didn't see him in time, and she ran right into him. She literally bounced off his chest, landing with a thud on the floor. She gazed stupidly at him for a moment, and then grinned sheepishly. "Sorry," she muttered. "I was out of shampoo and figured you wouldn't mind too much if I borrowed some of yours."

He glared down at her, not bothering to hide the irritation in his gaze. The silly girl was wearing one of his extra robes, and her hair was pulled back in a hair tie. Was nothing sacred to her? "What you mean," he growled, "is that you thought you could steal some without getting caught."

She shrugged. "You climb the potato, I climb the rock." He rolled his eyes. There she goes again. "I swear, you are about as intelligent as a chair." She just grinned, blithely ignoring his insult. "Which one?" she asked nonsensically. "What?" She winked sagely. "Which chair? The one in the far corner is fairly smart, you know. It's got exactly one one- millionth of a brain cell. The others don't have any at all. It's a shame, really, that even the intelligent chairs get lumped in with the rest."

He glared at her. "So," she persisted, "can I borrow your shampoo?" He groaned, but jerked his head in the direction of the bathroom. He'd learned by this point that there simply wasn't any stopping her. If she wanted something, she eventually got it through a combination of sheer stubbornness and her continued obliviousness to anything resembling a hint. The truly annoying part was that she didn't act this way out of discourtesy or meanness. She was completely innocent in her invasion of his solitary life.

While the girl was occupied with his shampoo, Takeru quickly fled the house. He pulled out his cell phone as he descended in the elevator, eliciting a glare from the youth behind the front desk. He dialed a number, and a sleepy voice answered, "Hello, Takeru." Takeru blinked. "How'd you know it was me, Willis?" Takeru could hear Willis's sigh. "You're the only person who'll call at such an insane hour. Don't you realize that it's not even noon yet?"   
  
Takeru grinned involuntarily. In spite of all of his brains, Willis spent most of his time bouncing from one club-and half a dozen women-to another every night. As a consequence, he often slept in until three or four each afternoon. Like Takeru, Willis didn't have to work. He earned his living through the software company they'd started with two other friends back in high school. Takeru, though, spent many hours making sure the company was running properly. Willis was content to simply pick up his check every week.   
  
He and Takeru had an unlikely friendship. Willis was suave and flirtatious, while Takeru was perpetually stone-faced and never laughed. TK was solitary, but Willis was happiest in a large crowd. For the life of him, Takeru could not figure out how they'd become friends. It seemed to him that they'd always known each other.   
  
This odd bond extended to Takeru's other two companions, as well. Davis was a joker who treated life as a never-ending game. He was rarely serious, and his favorite targets were Takeru and Willis. Ken, on the other hand, seemed to always have one foot in the stars. He often answered straightforward questions with riddles. Somehow, the four of them had remained friends against all odds.   
  
Their friendship had only been strengthened by the events of the past few years. They'd been successful businessmen, and their company had taken off thanks, in part, to the combined skills of the four of them. Their lives couldn't have looked better, but then everything changed. One day, about six years ago, something serious had happened to them. One moment, they were having dinner together, and the next, they were lying in a ruined cave in the middle of a frozen wasteland.   
  
They'd nearly frozen to death before they were rescued by a team of British scientists. The scientists reported that they'd registered great amounts of energy at the location, but when they arrived, they found only the four men and the rubble of a cave that had stood for thousands of years. Since Takeru and his friends couldn't explain what had happened, they were reluctantly sent back to America. When they arrived, Takeru discovered that they'd been missing for nearly a year. Davis joked that they'd been kidnapped by aliens, but they never actually remembered what had happened during those months.   
  
After a while, the scientists started to pester the four men, wanting to study them. Rather than being subjected to various blood tests and CAT scans, they'd taken off. They'd flown out of the country during the night, heading for Tokyo. They'd heard that a lot of strange things had been happening in the capital, and they figured that they might find some answers there. Their suspicions increased when they'd discovered that the number of odd monsters attacking the city had temporarily disappeared around the same time that they had awakened in the cave. Realizing that their research might take a little longer than they'd expected, they'd found apartments and settled into a life in Tokyo. Five years later, they weren't any closer to solving the mystery.   
  
"TK?" asked Willis as the silence continued. "Sorry, man. I guess I just got caught up in my thoughts. Did you want to try out that new club tonight?" There was a long silence on the other end of the line. "Doth mine ears deceive me?" queried Willis facetiously. "You want to go to a club? What brought that on?"   
  
"I've got to get away from that girl before she kills me. She's driving me up a wall. Call the guys and give them a heads up, will you?"   
  
"Sure thing, pal. I heard that this club is really something. I'll see you tonight. You can tell me all about this girl that you're so crazy about."   
  
"I'm not the crazy one. She is." Willis chuckled. "Whatever, man."   
  
"Shut up, Willis."   
  
"You were right, Will. This place rocks!" Davis gazed enthusiastically at the club around them. "Look at all of the women!" he shouted loudly, earning glares from every female in the place.   
  
The foursome threaded their way to the bar, where Takeru immediately tried to drown himself in.ice water. "Come on, TK. You have to get drunk sometime. If this girl's everything that you say, you deserve it." Willis took a sip from his own dirty martini. "I don't want to lose my judgment, Will. You know that." Willis shrugged dismissively.   
  
"Who's the girl you're talking about, TK?" Takeru shrugged. "My last apartment didn't work out, so I moved into a different place. I'm stuck living with a silly college girl. She's loud, she never shuts up, and she butts into everything. I'm seriously considering strangling her tonight."   
  
The other three blinked at him. "Wow, she must really be something. Nothing ever bothers you." Davis seemed astounded. "What does she do for a living?"   
  
Takeru thought hard. She'd said something about photo shoots, hadn't she? "I think she's a model or an actress or something like that. All I know is that her apartment is incredible. It must cost her a couple grand a month to live there." 

Ken held up a hand. "Let me get this straight. You get to live in an incredible apartment for practically nothing, and you live with a model. She's pretty, right?"

Takeru shrugged again. "Sure, she's gorgeous, but she's still a pain. She's a slob, and I'm a neat freak. She's loud, and I'm quiet. She's too sunny, and I'm." He paused, but Davis finished his sentence for him. "As gloomy as a rainy day in the middle of winter in Chicago." Takeru made a face at him, but Davis just laughed.

Takeru glanced up as a sudden silence descended on the club. For a place where the music was so loud that Takeru had practically been shouting, the abrupt lack of noise was deafening. He looked around, but he didn't see anything unusual. "What's going on?" he asked the 

bartender.

The bartender just pointed over to the door, where a couple had just entered. One of them, a tall, young woman with auburn hair, glanced quickly around, and then made for a table in the back. At her side was a guy with big bushy brown hair. "Who are they?" asked Davis curiously.   
  
The bartender shrugged. "That's Sora and Tai. They're regulars." Ken looked closely at the couple. "That's cute and all, but what's so special about them that made everybody suddenly get quiet?"   
  
"They're both pretty big celebrities. Sora is a violinist in the Tokyo Symphony. Her companion is Taichi, one of the best drivers down at the racetrack. He's won every race he's ever been in. They're both filthy rich, of course, and they carry a lot of political and social clout. If you ever want a favor, they're the people to turn to. The problem is that they won't tolerate very much. I wouldn't mess with them if I were you."   
  
Takeru turned back to his ice water. The noise slowly started back up, and then cut off once more. Takeru didn't turn around this time, but Davis gave a low whistle. "Man, look at them! They're gorgeous!" The bartender chuckled lightly. "Those gals are Sora and Taichi's closest friends. I gotta warn you, pal, you don't want to go near them. Sora doesn't take well to people who mess with her friends."

Takeru glanced at Davis, whose mouth was hanging open unattractively. "But look at them!" He elbowed Takeru. "TK, you've got to turn around!" Takeru turned, more to quiet his friend than because he actually cared about the women. The first woman was a dark- haired, mulberry-eyed beauty in a short red dress. The second girl was a tall, leggy blonde with sky blue eyes in a medium length blue gown. The third girl had glossy purple hair and eyes, and she wore a simple, elegant purple dress. The next girl was in white, and her pink hair draped down her back. The last girl was.

"I don't believe it!" he spat. "Is she stalking me or something?" Davis turned to his best friend in surprise. "What's wrong, TK? Do you know one of 'em?" Takeru slammed his drink down onto the counter. "The brunette in the gold is my roommate!"   
  
The bartender whistled. "You know Kari? You lucky dog! Just about every guy in this bar is after that group, but fully half of them want just Kari. And you say that you live with her?" He clapped Takeru on the shoulder. "If I were you, I wouldn't let that little fact get bandied about. You're liable to get mugged in the parking lot by a mob of jealous guys."   
  
Takeru rolled his eyes, but even he had to admit the truth in the man's statement. In spite of all her faults, Kari was exceptionally beautiful. Her hair was pulled up into the pink bow that she was never without, and she wore a short, gold dress that seemed to give off a light of its own. In the dim light, she looked even lovelier than she usually did. Still, he couldn't suppress his groan of annoyance as she and the brunette picked their way through the throng to the bar.

"Hey, Mac," Kari called in her soft voice. "Four champagnes and one water, please." Mac turned to get her order. "Who's the pinky, Kari? I recognize her, but she's not a regular." Kari grinned. "That's my friend, Mimi. She just turned 22 today, so we brought her here to celebrate." Mac handed a bottle and four glasses to Kari, who gave them to the blonde. "Here, takes these back to the girls, will you, Cathy? I want to talk to Mac for a minute." The blonde took the drinks and left.

Kari turned back to the barkeep, who handed her an unopened water bottle. "Aren't you going to drink, too, Kari? I'd accuse you of freeloading if it weren't for the fact that most of the men in here come in to see you, and end up paying for drinks to console themselves when you inevitably turn them down." She shook her head, not commenting on his compliment. "You know I never have any alcohol. I like keeping my head on straight."   
  
Takeru couldn't repress his grunt of disgust. "Yeah, it's hard enough for you to keep it on as it is." Kari turned in surprise as she noticed Takeru for the first time. She grinned widely. "Hi, Taki! What are you doing here?" He grunted. "I was hiding. Obviously the other end of town isn't far enough to get away from you."   
  
She blinked, but, as usual, blithely ignored his comment. She was about to continue her conversation with Mac, but the dark-haired girl sauntered over and joined Kari at the bar. "Hey, Mac," she called. "Yeah?" Mac answered as he refilled Davis's glass.   
  
"Other bars have karaoke. Why don't you?" Mac stared at the girl, who grinned wickedly. "This isn't that kind of bar, Jade. My customers wouldn't go for that sort of thing. I'd lose money."   
  
Jade's eyes glinted with evil intent. "Even if Kari were the one singing?" Kari whirled on her companion. "Hey! I don't sing, Jade! That's your thing, not mine!" Jade laughed cruelly. "It'd better become your thing. If you don't get your bod up on that stage, I'll tell everyone that you're dating Marvin." Kari scoffed at her friend. "Nobody will ever believe it." Jade pulled a photo from behind her back. "I had Yolie design this on her computer. Nobody'll be able to tell that it's fake."   
  
She held the photo up, and Takeru couldn't resist taking a close look at it. It showed Kari sitting with her arm around a nerdy little man with glasses and a puckered face. The Kari in the photo was leaning close to the boy, her lips just inches from his. Takeru cringed just from looking at it.   
  
Kari snatched the photo from Jade's hand. Jade grinned, and said in a sing- song voice, "I haavvee cooppiess!" Kari groaned and hung her head. "You win, you evil wench. I haven't sung in years, though. If I flop, it'll be your fault." She turned to the ecstatic bartender. "Do you have a microphone, Mac?" Mac nodded swiftly, saying gleefully, "There's some music- only CD's in the back that she can use, too. Man, this is going to up my sales for weeks! Do you realize how many guys would pay for you to sing? They'll come back every day in case there's a repeat performance!"   
  
Kari shrugged. "You exaggerate too much, Mac." She turned and headed for the seldom-used stage in the back of the bar. Jade followed her, still grinning mischievously. Takeru turned to watch, curious to see if his air-headed roommate could actually sing.   
  
Jade hopped onto the stage, pulling the microphone from Kari's hands as she went. She turned the thing on, calling for everybody's attention. Every eye in the place turned to her, and Kari sighed audibly. "Hey, everybody! We've got a special treat for you tonight. The lovely Kari has graciously consented to sing for us!" As cheers-noticeably male dominated-erupted from the crowd, Jade jumped off the stage and ran toward the stack of CD's next to it. She picked a CD at random, and showed it to Kari. Kari rolled her eyes, but nodded, so Jade slid the disk into the music player. "She'll be singing a song by Selena. Let's give it up for Hikari Kamiya!"   
  
Kari rolled her eyes again as Jade returned the microphone. The lights dimmed even more, and soft music began to play. Kari stood, graceful and slender, in the center of the stage. The few lights that remained on lit her hair to a glossy beam of sunshine, and she gazed at the crowd through half-lidded eyes. As the beat picked up, she opened her mouth and began to sing.

I could lose my heart tonight,  
  
If you don't turn and walk away.  
  
'Cause the way I feel I might,  
  
Lose control, and let you stay.  
  
'Cause I could take you in my arms,  
  
And never let you go.  
  
I could fall in love with you.  
  
I could fall in love with you, baby.  
  
Takeru couldn't believe his ears. Her voice was a lovely as the rest of her. It was husky and low, and he doubted that she knew just how sultry she sounded. The men in the audience certainly knew, though, 

because they stared at her with open mouths and glazed eyes.

I could only wonder how,  
  
Touching you would make me feel.  
  
But if I take that chance right now,  
  
Tomorrow will you want me still?  
  
'Cause I should keep this to myself  
  
And never let you know.  
  
I could fall in love with you.  
  
I could fall in love with you, baby.  
  
And I know it's not right,  
  
And I guess I should try  
  
To do what I should do.  
  
But I could fall in love.  
  
Fall in love with you, baby.  
  
I could fall in love with you.

"My gosh," muttered the barkeeper as Kari's voice rose to match the music. "She's going to be fighting them off with a club. If the guys thought she set the moon before, they won't be able to keep their hands off her after this." Though Takeru remained silent, he couldn't help but agree with the awed bar tender. Kari was incredible.   
  
I should keep this to myself,  
  
And never let you know,  
  
I could fall in love with you.  
  
I could fall in love with you, baby.  
  
I could fall in love  
  
I could fall in love with you, baby.  
  
I could fall in love with you. 

As the music ended, Kari jumped down from the stage. Her cheeks were flushed with embarrassment, but her eyes were shining. "That was awful, Jade. Don't expect me to do that again."

Jade grinned at her friend. "Yeah, but think of all the guys who will be calling you after this. You'll have a date every night for the next year." Kari's other friends overheard the comment as they surrounded the brunette. "She already has a date every night," teased the blonde sarcastically. "She even has a waiting list for her dates." 

"Yeah," interjected the purple-haired young woman, "but maybe now she'll be able to find a guy that will last for more than a single evening." Kari's four friends looked at her for a second, and then burst out laughing. "That'll never happen," scoffed the pink-haired. "Kari's goal is to date every single guy on the planet." She pretended to calculate something on her fingers. "I'd say she's about half-way there."

Kari groaned. "It's only nine o'clock, and you're already mocking me. Will I never get any peace?" she complained as she directed her eyes to the ceiling in a mock-prayer.

The pinked-haired shrieked suddenly. "Is it already nine? Oh, no!" Jade lifted an eyebrow. "What's the deal, pinkie?" The girl-aptly named- scowled. "I'm supposed to meet Matt (TK and Matt don't know each other…) for a special birthday dinner! I totally forgot! Can one of you guys give me a ride?"

"I'll take you, Meems," a deep voice announced. TK turned to see the racer and violinist from earlier. "I can get you there in no time." Her purpled- haired companion scoffed, "That's because you don't understand the concept of speed limits." Tai shrugged, and Mimi jumped up and down in enthusiasm. "Oh, thank you, Tai!" She practically dragged the older boy from the room. Tai called over his shoulder to Sora, "I'll be right back. Don't leave for a little while, okay?" They disappeared from the bar before Sora could respond.

"Hey, Sora," greeted Kari. "So, how are you and my brother?" shook her head slightly. "I told you, we're just friends."

As they chatted, a young, seedy-looking man sidled up to Kari. "You're the singer," he announced in a drunken voice. Kari smiled politely at him, but turned back to her conversation with Sora. The man scowled and grabbed her arm roughly. "I said, 'You're the singer'." Kari lifted an eyebrow. "I'm aware of that, thank you," she said, less politely this time. 

The man gave a greasy little smile. "So, you want to come back to my place for a little while? You could give me a private performance." He leered at her, and Kari didn't bother to hide her disgust. "No, thanks," she said.

The man let Kari go, but didn't leave. Instead, he pulled something from his stained leather jacket. Pointing the gun at Kari's temple, he gestured to a group of similar men lounging in a corner of the room. They, too, pulled weapons from their coats and started waving them around menacingly. The crowd suddenly hushed, and the closest dancers backed away from the gunmen. The first man grinned, and grabbed Kari's arm again. He pointed the gun at the bartender. "I want everything you have," he said. "Everybody else can line up against the wall while I decide what I want to do."

Takeru moved to help, but the first man pointed the gun back at Kari. "Move again, and I'll kill her," he growled. Takeru glanced at Kari, but her face was perfectly calm. There was something in her eyes that he'd never seen before. "Do as he says, Taki," she commanded in a voice that would brook no argument. Takeru and his friends joined the other dancers along the far wall, where the gunmen had already started gathering the crowd's jewelry and money.   
  
As far as Takeru could tell, there were a total of fifteen gunmen. Several of them had grabbed onto some frightened women, and were whispering disgustingly into their ears. They'd also taken Kari and her four friends, but these women didn't seem frightened at all. Instead, they stood with folded hands, waiting patiently for the gunmen to make a move. Takeru blinked. How could Kari, an acknowledged ditz, act so calm when she had a gun pointed at her forehead? She should, at the very least, be terrified.   
  
After a few moments, the first gunmen ordered his men to return the women to the crowd. They obeyed, albeit reluctantly. Kari was the only one that remained, clasped tightly in the arms of the ringleader. Takeru continued to watch her, waiting for some sign that she was bothered by what was happening around her. She didn't give any.   
  
Just when Takeru was getting ready to make a move against the gunmen, one of the bouncers appeared, dragging Tai behind him. Like his friends, he didn't seem bothered by the fact that he was in mortal danger. "I found this one skulking outside. He saw everything," the traitorous bouncer announced. The first man grabbed him by the shirt, forcing him to look at him. "Did you tell anyone?" he demanded. "Just the cops," he grinned, and the man struck him hard. Tai didn't react, and the man threw him into the crowd, where Sora quickly pulled her to her feet.   
  
The first man turned back to Kari, seizing her by the hair. "It looks like we're going to have company, pretty one. Maybe you can entertain me until they get here, eh?" He forced her head up and covered her mouth with his. Kari scrunched up her face in loathing, but she didn't try to pull away. Instead, she lifted one of her hands and started to gesture behind the man's back.   
  
Takeru glanced at Tai, and noticed that both she and Kari's other friends were watching Kari's movements with an intensity that belied their outward serenity. Kari held up a fist, crooking her elbow at a right angle. Sora echoed the action, and then held up a single finger. Kari winked, and jerked her fist to the left. She held up two fingers, and pointed to the right. Sora nodded subtly, and Kari dropped her arm.   
  
As the man finally pulled his lips from hers, he murmured, "That was wonderful, my dear. I can't wait to see what other skills you have." He stopped talking as he noticed that Kari was smirking. "What's so funny?" he demanded, slapping her roughly. Kari continued to smile, ignoring the bruise that immediately colored her cheek. "Just this," she said, bringing her knee into his groin with enough force to knock him onto his back.   
  
Before the other men had time to react, Kari's friends leaped on them. Within seconds, they'd managed to knock several of the men to the ground, kicking their weapons out of reach. The remaining gunmen opened fire on the spot where they'd stood, but the women were already hiding behind some overturned tables. The people in the crowd quickly followed suite, ducking behind tables of their own. Takeru could clearly see the fight from where he crouched behind a counter.   
  
Kari was the only person still exposed. She avoided the bullets ricocheting off the walls around her, moving with an astounding speed. She back flipped over a table, grabbing a metal serving tray as she went. She made her way over to the D.J.'s table, using the metal tray 

as protection against the guns.

While the gunmen were occupied with Kari, Sora and her friends left the safety of the tables, moving steadily closer to the men. Takeru's own group quickly did the same. Kari finally ducked behind the music player, taking a handful of disks with her. She popped out from behind the counter long enough to throw a handful of the disks at the men. They flew out like Frisbees, slashing across wrists, throats, and any otherwise exposed skin. The men dropped their guns, grabbing violently for the resulting wounds. As they dropped their weapons, the people in hiding brought them down, the women using a series of kicks and punches that strongly resembled the martial arts. They look like black belts, mused Takeru of the women as each of the men dropped, unconscious, to the floor.   
  
Kari left her counter, nodding coolly to her friends. "Excellent job, girls," she said in an unusually professional voice. "You too, guys." She helped her companions collect the guns scattered across the room. Takeru's group started tying the gunmen up with bits of the rope that Davis found in a storeroom. Takeru looked around, noticing that the bouncer that had grabbed Sheena was nowhere to be seen.   
  
He looked up, searching frantically for some sign of the man. As he glanced toward a curtain, he finally noticed the big bouncer, weapon pointed at Takeru. Takeru heard the gun as it cocked, but there wasn't time for any reaction. In the split second that felt like an eternity, Takeru waited to die. He heard a gun go off, and wondered idly why the bouncer had collapsed from the bullet meant for Takeru. He turned to face Kari, who was holding a still-smoking weapon. At least one of them had reacted in time.   
  
He jerked toward Kari, face pale and eyes wide with shock. She calmly removed the cartridge from her gun, tossing it onto a pile with several others. He thought he saw her expression waver as she gazed at the man she'd just killed, but he wasn't certain. She was such a different person now than she'd ever been in the two weeks that he'd known her. Her eyes were colder, more cynical. She moved like a soldier, and her face was hard and serious. Where had the sunny child gone? 

A.N.: Note: This is not a song fic. I was writing this part of the story, and this song just happened to come on the radio. I was stuck, so I integrated the lyrics in. I don't even own a copy of Selena's song, so I don't know that I got all of the lyrics correct. I also don't speak Spanish, and I have no idea what the Spanish lyrics meant. Naturally, I couldn't add them, either!

I know they sound like super heroes or something, but I wanted some action… ihihihihihih  
  
Oh, and I might be using the English/Japanese versions of names later. Usually, I'd write them out, but I don't have time right now! I've got to go!

What a perty purple button! 


	3. Give Me Mouthwash!

Sorry guyz!!! My diskette broke with all the files I made and I'm so busy with school and everything! Here in the Philippines, school starts on June. I had to get ready for school, so busy. I'm so Sorry! I really am! But I made these three chapters just for all of you who read this! Thank you and sorry!

Disclaimer: I don not own Digimon…

CHAPTER THREE: Give Me Mouthwash!

When the police arrived several minutes later, Takeru realized that the girls were nowhere to be seen. Only Taichi and Sora remained behind to give their statements to the cops. Takeru noticed that when one of the hostages mentioned Kari and her friends, Taichi pulled the man aside and gave him several crisp looking twenties. The man glanced down at the money in his hand, and then at the stern face of Taichi before nodding slightly and backing away. Takeru watched Taichi and Sora closely while they repeated this act with several officers.

After Takeru had given his own statement to the cops, he fled from the bar. Waiting outside, in all of its inky perfection, was his motorcycle. Takeru removed the high-tech locks he'd placed on it, and then pulled on his matching black helmet. He sped off into the night, needing time to think about what he'd seen.

He rode late into the night, not returning to his apartment until well after dawn. After he locked his bike away in the parking garage across the street, he rode the elevator up to his room. Pulling off his shoes, he collapsed straight into his bed. He fell into an exhausted sleep as soon as his head touched the pillow.

Sunlight streaming through his window woke him up once more, and he groaned and drew his spare pillow over his head. When that didn't work, he finally rolled groggily off the bed. He sat on the edge, rubbing his gritty eyes with a tired hand. When he'd finally woken up enough that he wouldn't immediately fall over, he headed for his shower. He let the warm water wash over him for several moments, resting his head on one of the shower walls. He finally pulled himself out when the water turned cold.

After he'd changed into fresh clothes, he sauntered into the kitchen in search of something edible. As always, everything in the fridge was his. Kari's portion consisted of a tiny jar of expired ketchup and some moldy cheese. Shrugging in resignation, Takeru poured himself a bowl of cereal and sat down at the dining room table.

Kari was nowhere in sight, but Takeru spotted an opened newspaper in the middle of the table. He pulled it towards him, noticing that it was opened to a photo featuring the club from the previous night. He scanned the article quickly, relieved to find that neither he nor his friends were mentioned. Strangely enough, neither were the girls. You'd think that somebody would have said something, he mused. After all, they were the ones that saved everybody.

As soon as he finished his meal, Takeru meandered into the living room in search of something to occupy his mind. As he'd expected, he didn't find any suitable reading materials. Thinking that Kari might have something in her room, he tiptoed down the hallway toward her bedroom. He wondered idly if she were sleeping, but found that the bedroom door was open. Takeru slipped inside, glancing around for his roommate as he did.

He'd been expecting her room to be decorated similarly to the rest of the apartment, so he wasn't prepared for the sight that met his eyes. She still had the inevitable crystal and crème decor, as well as the same huge, four-poster bed. There was still a large rug on the floor, and a gigantic dresser similar to his own. Unlike in his room, though, her desk was piled high with video game boxes. He peered curiously at them, surprised to see that they were all Digimon games (). He shrugged. He hadn't taken his roommate for a Digimon junkie. Curiosity overcoming common sense, he pulled open some of her desk drawers. Inside, Takeru found dozens of different types of Digimon merchandise, including pencils, rolled up posters of some strange cat with gloves, and even an authentic-looking pink divice.

Takeru rifled through the contents of her desk for a few more minutes, thinking ruefully that Kari's obvious obsession with Digimon, particularly the strange cat took her far beyond a mere junkie. The extent of her obsession was almost scary.

Takeru heard the front door slamming, and voices filled the hallway. He slipped from Kari's room, careful to leave no trace of his presence. He slipped into his own room, hiding behind his bed. His caution was rewarded as his bedroom door creaked open, and a brunette head peered inside. Kari shut the door behind her, calling loudly, "He's not here, guys!" Kari's footsteps receded towards the living room, and Takeru breathed a sigh of relief.

Deciding that he didn't want to face her just yet, Takeru settled into an overstuffed chair with a book. He didn't know Kari's friends well enough to distinguish individual voices, but he could pick out Kari's. She was making an awful lot of noise in the kitchen and bathroom cabinets, shouting hysterically for mouthwash. "Argh!" she cried. "How can I not have mouthwash?! I've got to get the taste of that guy out of my mouth or I'll never be able to eat again!"

An exasperated voice muttered, "Not eating has never been an issue for you, Hika. You're almost as bad as Yolie." The front door slammed, and another voice yelled angrily, "I heard that, Jade!"

Kari squealed, and Takeru heard her footsteps running for the front door. "Bless you, Yolie!" There was a pause, and Takeru could hear her rummaging through what could only have been a brown paper grocery sack. "Look what this angel brought, guys! Mouthwash!" she cooed triumphantly. A second later, Takeru heard her slam the bathroom door. He cringed as Kari started to gargle and spit noisily. The gargling continued for several long moments. He heard Kari emerge again, and then Yolie's voice protested, "Hey, this bottle is empty! You weren't supposed to use all of it, Hika!"

"I'm just sorry that I ran out. Besides, you weren't the one that slime ball kissed. I swear, he must have been drinking rancid milk before he came to the bar." Several sets of feet plodded down the hall to the kitchen, and Takeru heard the refrigerator door being repeatedly slammed. There goes all of my food, he scowled. "Hey, there's some really good stuff in here, Kari! Where'd it all come from? You never go to the grocery store."

Kari's voice piped up. "Must be Taki's," she guessed. "Don't touch it. He gets really mad when people mess with his stuff." Takeru suppressed a relieved sigh. She'd learned that much, at least, though she hadn't yet learned to apply that lesson to her own actions.

"But I'm hungry!" whined Yolie. Obviously ignoring their friend's high- pitched complaint, a fourth voice cut in. "I have an idea! When's your next photo shoot, Hika?"

"Not for a couple of days. I'm supposed to be doing a perfume ad, but the people in charge are having problems booking just the right site, so they postponed it. Why? Have you got something that you want to do instead, Cathy?"

Cathy's voice was thoughtful. "Well, we haven't gotten together with just our group in a long time. Why don't we have a party?" Four voices cheered. "How about tomorrow?" inquired Jade.

"Nah, I've got a hot date tomorrow," said Kari. "Why not just have it here, tonight? We can invite the Outers, Mimi and Matt, too." The girls groaned at the mention of Kari's upcoming date, and Cathy finally asked in irritation, "What about your date tonight, Hika? Are you willing to cancel that?"

Kari's voice was dismissive. She was obviously used to their teasing. "Sure. It's just one of the guys from the arcade. I can't even remember his name." The groans were even louder this time. "I'd hate to be your date, Hika. Those poor boys."

"Come on, Jade, it's not like I'm ever serious about any of them, anyway. 'Sides, they have as much fun as I do." Takeru heard several chairs scraping against the kitchen floor. "Okay, guys. We'll meet back here in a couple of hours. Oh, and Yolie? Bring some more mouthwash, will you?" Kari's voice was wistful. "I can still taste him."

The other girls left, and Takeru heard Kari going into her bedroom. A few minutes later, he heard water running. Kari made a little more noise, and the Jacuzzi tub kicked on. Deciding that Kari was going to be awhile, Takeru deemed it safe to leave his room.

He hesitated in the living room, wondering whether he should wait for Kari to come out or just take off on his own. His need for answers had abated considerably, though he was still curious about where she'd picked up her odd skills. She must have taken martial arts or something, he mused. That's all it is.

He sauntered into the living room, deciding to wait for Kari, after all. He wandered around for a few minutes, straightening the few items that Kari's friends had disturbed. When the room was spotless once more, Takeru wandered over to the painting on the mantle.

As he approached the painting, his heart automatically started to beat a little faster. He stared at the city in the painting for a long moment, waiting in vain for the sensations he'd experienced that first time. When they didn't come, Takeru was almost disappointed. Granted, those sensations hadn't exactly been pleasant, but they'd left him with a strong desire for more. Maybe, just maybe, some of the answers that he sought for his own mysteries lay in the painting's images.

When nothing happened, Takeru stepped even closer. He was now near enough that by simply stretching out one arm, he'd be able to touch the surface. Unable to stop himself, he did just that. His heart skipped a beat as his fingers touched the painting, and he chided himself for expecting something momentous to happen. Still, he didn't draw his fingers away immediately. In spite of his better judgment, he was intrigued by the feel of the canvas under his fingers. Most paintings are rough, marked by the layers of paint placed upon them. This artwork, however, was as smooth as glass. Takeru wasn't exactly an art critic, but he knew that this was unusual. Still, he didn't think that the image on the canvas was computer generated. It was too lifelike, too real, to have been created by anything except a true artist and brush.

As he ran his fingers along the surface, a particularly bright spot of paint caught his eye. This bright swatch of paint was set in the heart of the city, and he could have sworn that it hadn't been there before. He leaned closer, wondering how he could possibly have missed such a colorful splash of red. His fingers brushed the red, and Takeru suddenly felt incredibly dizzy. He tried to pull his fingers away, guessing that the painting was responsible, but they were glued to the canvas. He closed his eyes, trying desperately to fight the nausea. He collapsed as the wave of dizziness overcame him.

Someone was slapping his face hard enough to give him bruises. Takeru waved the person's hand away, trying desperately to open his eyes. He felt as though his eyelids were weighted down with lead, but he eventually managed to crack them open.

A child with bright blonde hair was staring down at him, worry clear in his blue-colored eyes. Takeru grunted and sat up, and the boy backed nervously away. Takeru stared at the child, wondering briefly why he seemed so frightened. TK glanced down at himself. He wasn't that scary, was he?  
Realizing that something else must have frightened the child, Takeru stood slowly. His body was stiff, almost as though he'd been lying on the ground for many hours. He still wore the same clothes, but they were now smeared with dirt and grime.

He looked around, knowing instinctively that he wasn't anywhere near his apartment. He was standing in an abandoned courtyard, outside a building that must once have been very beautiful. Now, though, the air was thick with dust, and not even a blade of grass grew between the smooth cobblestones. Half of the building was torn down, and the fountain in the center was a smoking ruin. Rubble was scattered everywhere, and, for a moment, he feared that he was experiencing something similar to the events that had brought him to Tokyo in the first place.

As Takeru shook off his confusion, he noticed that the boy was beckoning furiously. Takeru followed the child into a shadowed corner of the courtyard, though he still didn't see anything that could make the boy shake so. As he came near enough to the child to hear his frenzied breathing, something whistled through the air over their heads. Takeru looked into the sky, startled to see something that looked a lot like a comet. The sizzling comet left a trail of black smoke behind it, and Takeru felt a rush of pity for the people that lay in its path. The fiery rock was at least the size of Takeru himself, and it would inevitably cause a lot of damage.

Strangely enough, Takeru didn't hear the comet land. Odd, he thought in alarm. I should have heard that thing crash. Takeru turned back to the child, hoping to get some answers. His eyes widened when he saw that the boy had disappeared. As more comets sped through the air above him, Takeru edged slowly into the corridor. If he could find the boy, he might learn where he was.

Takeru slid into the cool darkness, pressing his hands against the smooth walls to keep from tripping. He was a little unsettled by the fact that the walls were the same incomprehensibly smooth texture as the painting back in the apartment.

Just when Takeru was ready to turn back and find another route, a small hand latched onto his wrist. Takeru jumped, shaking the hand off as quickly as he could. A light flared in the darkness, and Takeru shielded his eyes with one hand. When his eyes finally adjusted, Takeru could see a set of semi-familiar topaz eyes. The child whispered something in a language that Takeru didn't understand, and pointed to a grate at the base of a wall. As the child scuttled over to the grate, Takeru finally understood what the boy was trying to say. The boy kept speaking, but Takeru merely shook his head to show that he didn't understand the words. The child sighed, and gestured that Takeru was to help him remove the grate. Takeru knelt beside the boy, and together they dragged the heavy bit of metal away.

The boy handed the lamp to Takeru, and then dropped into the hole. That tiny hand crept back out, grabbing the lamp. As the light faded into the hole, Takeru thought that he heard footsteps coming from the direction of the courtyard. His first impulse was to go to the footsteps, but something held him back. The footsteps were too loud and too rhythmic to be anything but a military unit, and TK had the feeling that he didn't want anything to do with them. He slipped into the hole.

He fell for a few feet, landing with a bone-jarring thud on harsh concrete. As he straightened, he realized that there were people all around him. Several of them held lamps, but others carried crude sticks and similar weapons. Several of these men kept their weapons pointed at him, though Takeru knew they were not a true threat to his safety. These strange men held their sticks too loosely, and they obviously didn't know how to use them. Several of them actually looked afraid of Takeru. From their expressions, Takeru knew that they didn't really want to hurt him. Without understanding the source of his knowledge, Takeru suddenly realized that these men were farmers and artisans, not killers or soldiers. His fear of them evaporated as quickly as if it had never been.

As the sounds of the army came closer, several of the more brawny men pulled the grate back into place. It slid into its socket just as dozens of steel-tipped boots entered the alley. Along with the other men in the tunnel, Takeru held his breath until the soldiers passed. As soon as the threat was gone, Takeru looked to the boy for further instructions. The child just shrugged and pointed to one of the adults, a man with more cunning and less fear on his face than any of the others. This man gave a single, curt nod, and held his fingers to his lips. He then turned and walked into the darkness. The other men followed immediately, but Takeru hesitated. These men were obviously rebels, and Takeru didn't really want to get involved with whatever war they were fighting.  
As the last man disappeared, the child latched onto one of Takeru's hands. The boy pulled insistently on his arm, but still Takeru held back. The boy lifted his lamp, and Takeru stared into those tawny eyes. This boy has seen too much for a child of his years, Takeru thought in disgust. Whoever did this to him is a monster. Sighing at his own weakening, Takeru allowed the child to pull him away from the grate.

The child did not release Takeru's hand for a very long while. After a time, Takeru realized that the darkness wasn't quite so deep. If he squinted, he could just make out a light up ahead. The light was far too steady to be just another lamp, and Takeru felt his spirits lifting. Something about this tunnel had been too familiar, too oppressing. It was too much like the eternal darkness in the red-eyed witch's caves.

Takeru shook his head suddenly, trying to dislodge the rest of that half-memory. Another clue to that lost year, he thought tiredly. I just wish I could remember the rest. Of course, I might be sorry that I did remember when the memories come back.

Takeru glanced down at the boy beside him. He truly hated the look in the child's eyes. It was too much like Kari's after the fight in the bar. It was the look of someone who had lost his innocence, someone who had lost hope. Involuntarily, Takeru clutched the child's hand more tightly.

Within a few minutes, Takeru realized that the light was, indeed, getting brighter. TK and his companions emerged from the tunnel into a large, underground room. This room was only dimly lit, as if the people feared discovery even here. As he glanced around, Takeru saw that he was surrounded by literally thousands of people, all of whom had that bright blond hair. He wondered idly if they dyed their hair, or if the color was natural.

The child released Takeru as several big men pushed him into the center of the room. As his guards led him forward, Takeru could hear a single voice rising above the general cacophony. He still could not understand what was being said, but he was able to pick out the words 'digidestines' and 'Digital world'. Both words were issued repeatedly, and the crowd murmured them amongst themselves like a prayer.

After several more moments, the crowd hushed. Several people turned to look at him, faces hostile. Takeru was pushed forward once more, and the people parted to let him through. He was shoved onto a platform where a group of official-looking men waited. Takeru was grateful to notice that the officials, at least, weren't so openly aggressive.

As Takeru finished mounting the dais, the people around him started shouting questions. Takeru just regarded them all with a blank look, and eventually they quieted. One of the men standing by him, an older man whose brown hair was streaked with white, came over to him. He murmured something in his own language, watching Takeru's bewildered expression. Finally, he nodded to himself, and then pointed to the floor. "Digital world," he said, obviously expected Takeru to understand. "Digital world," the man repeated.

As Takeru continued to look at him in confusion, the man gestured to a member of the crowd. The new person, a younger man with just the beginnings of a beard, carried some kind of chart with him. He handed the chart to the official, who spread it out at Takeru's feet. Takeru stared at it, wondering why he was being shown a map of the world, or was it the world.

Takeru knelt, gazing hard at the map. His shrewd blue eyes took in the exquisite detailing, the colorful letters. Unlike the maps Takeru had seen in school, this chart showed mountain ranges, lakes, rivers, and even what appeared to be major cities and roadways that should have been completely bare. Takeru stared at the official, wondering why somebody would bother doing such a thing. It's not like I don't know any better, though Takeru in annoyance.

Once more, the official pointed to the ground, saying "Digital world." He then pointed to one of the planets, repeating the same word. "Digital World." Deciding that this guy was crazy and needed to be humored, Takeru pointed to Earth. The man nodded, and then addressed the crowd. Whatever he said appeased the restless people, and most of them lost their hostility.

The official gestured to yet another man, who started to come forward. The brunette child that had found him in the first place suddenly shouted something, and the man hesitated. The child said something else, and the official waved him away with a dismissive hand. Taking the official's dismissal as permission to approach, the child scurried up to Takeru, grabbing his hand in a familiar gesture. The child pulled Takeru back through the crowd, though the people did not let him pass this time. They seemed to think that he was no longer a threat, so they weren't willing to give him extra space.

The child led TK through yet another tunnel, though this was not the same one they had entered by. In a tiny cavern just a few feet from the main room, Takeru found a young man huddled over a table. Scattered across the table were literally dozens of tiny machines. Takeru blinked, having a hard time reconciling this place of refugees and darkness with these obviously advance mechanical devices.

The young man looked up as they entered, and the boy started speaking again. The man stared shrewdly at Takeru the entire time, and then he sighed and picked up a crescent shaped bit of metal. He made some adjustments on the metal with an equally tiny tool, and then approached Takeru. Takeru jerked back involuntarily, and the man said something else to the boy. The child shrugged and spouted off a stream of incoherent sentences. Surprise flitted across the man's face as the boy repeatedly mentioned Earth.

Finally, the child reached out and grabbed Takeru's hand once more. The man held up his own hand, signaling that Takeru was to remain still. Takeru nodded tersely, and the man slid the device onto TK's ear. Takeru felt a little sting of pressure against his skin, but this sensation quickly passed. He tentatively felt the device with one hand, relieved to discover that the thing wasn't hurting him in any way.

As the boy and the man continued to speak to each other in that musical tongue, Takeru could have sworn that some of their words suddenly made sense. He shook his head, trying to clear his ears, but the language he was hearing continued to change. "...Toi said he was from Earth, but that he's not with those guys attacking us. What do you think, Lano?"

The man, Lano, shrugged. "He doesn't seem to be too dangerous. Still, you should be careful around him, kid. We don't know anything about him or his people." Lano glanced once more at Takeru. "Unless I miss my guess, he can understand us now. What's your name, man?"

Takeru continued to gape at him, but he answered quickly enough, "Takeru. Where am I?" The other man shrugged and half-laughed. "Not the most original of questions, but understandable, I suppose." He spread his arms wide, taking in everything around them. "This is the Digital World, earth- man."

Takeru stared, eyes wide. "Digital World? As in the game?" The man glanced at the boy, who shrugged. The man's intense eyes took in Takeru once more, and then he smiled amicably. "Why don't you take TK here back to Toi, Doni? I'm sure they can answer each others' questions."

The man waved a farewell to Takeru as he and the boy headed back to the main cavern. The difference was remarkable. Instead of just a confusing ramble of unintelligible words, Takeru could now pick out individual conversations. He felt less like an interloper now.

The official was still addressing the crowd. "Please be calm!" he shouted. "Princess of Light is on her way. In the meantime, we can only hide and pray to the goddess that the enemy doesn't find us."

"What if she doesn't come? What if Myotismon sends more of those comets? Our shield will only protect us from one or two more. What will we do if she doesn't come?" demanded an angry voice from the crowd. Toi spread his arms wide. "When has she ever failed us?" The official kept his expression reasonable. "She will come."

The official spotted Takeru, and waved him forward. As Takeru started up the steps, one of the cavern walls exploded in a flash of sparks and rubble. Through the hole, hundreds of heavily armed men in green uniforms poured into the cavern. As the crowd started to back away, a second blast blew out the opposite wall.

They were surrounded.

Takeru and the rebels were herded back into the courtyard. They were bound together with strips of metal, and then forced to wait in the hot sun while the soldiers in green kept their weapons trained on them.

As they crouched on the decimated floor, Takeru gazed at the people around him. They were frightened, of course, and they kept glancing at the sky as if they expected angels from heaven to come down to the planet to save them. Takeru thought they were incredibly foolish to rely on anybody but themselves, but he couldn't see a way out of their bonds, either.

One of the soldiers, a man to whom the others all deferred, sauntered along the line of prisoners, glancing at each face as he walked by. Takeru noticed that he gazed longest at the officials. He grunted, and then continued on. Takeru expected the soldier to pass on by without a second look, but the man unexpectedly stopped. He stared at Takeru for only an instant before gesturing furiously to another of the soldiers. The second soldier came forward, a large key in his hand. The lead soldier merely pointed to Takeru, and the man with the key quickly unlocked the chains holding him. Takeru rubbed his wrists as he was shoved forward.

Takeru faced the general, seeing the fear and hatred in the man's face. Again, Takeru wondered why anyone would fear him. "Take him to the general!" barked the soldier, and Takeru was immediately loaded onto some sort of transport vehicle. He glanced over his shoulder as the car pulled away. Both the boy and the main official were staring at him with a mixture of suspicion and hope. Takeru knew they expected him to break free and somehow rescue the others. Takeru looked around, trying to find some method of escape. The soldier sitting next to him glared and pointed his weapon at Takeru's heart. Takeru looked away, knowing that the soldier would fire long before Takeru had the chance to jump off the vehicle.

The trip was short and uneventful. After only a few minutes, the vehicle pulled up to a large building that was, remarkably, still intact. Soldiers in green milled listlessly around the exterior, and they all stared at him with that same fear on their faces.

As he entered the building, Takeru tried not to feel so much like a lamb being led to the slaughter. The soldier behind him kept poking him in the back with his weapon, and Takeru had to repress the urge to spin and hit the man. The soldier prodded Takeru up a long flight of marble stairs. At the top of the stairs was a door guarded prodigiously by no less than four big guards. The guards stopped Takeru, inspected him with blank faces, and then allowed him to pass. TK was shoved into a large office, richly furnished by red carpet and plush chairs. The door slammed shut behind him.

As Takeru gazed around the room, he noticed that someone was sitting behind a desk in a leather chair facing the floor-to-ceiling stained glass window. The back of the chair was too high for Takeru to see anything but the pair of crossed legs clad in dark green fabric. Tired of being treated like an animal, Takeru cleared his throat rudely. He heard a sharp intake of breath, and the man in the chair stood to face his prisoner. Takeru couldn't help gasping.

The man was himself.

Heheheh… not really what I got in mind, but good enough… so, hm… What do you think?

/That purple button looks so beautiful!/


	4. Rude Awakening

CHAPTER THREE: Bars and Brawls

When the police arrived several minutes later, Takeru realized that the girls were nowhere to be seen. Only Taichi and Sora remained behind to give their statements to the cops. Takeru noticed that when one of the hostages mentioned Kari and her friends, Taichi pulled the man aside and gave him several crisp looking twenties. The man glanced down at the money in his hand, and then at the stern face of Taichi before nodding slightly and backing away. Takeru watched Taichi and Sora closely while they repeated this act with several officers.

After Takeru had given his own statement to the cops, he fled from the bar. Waiting outside, in all of its inky perfection, was his motorcycle. Takeru removed the high-tech locks he'd placed on it, and then pulled on his matching black helmet. He sped off into the night, needing time to think about what he'd seen.

He rode late into the night, not returning to his apartment until well after dawn. After he locked his bike away in the parking garage across the street, he rode the elevator up to his rooms. Pulling off his shoes, he collapsed straight into his bed. He fell into an exhausted sleep as soon as his head touched the pillow.

Sunlight streaming through his window woke him up once more, and he groaned and drew his spare pillow over his head. When that didn't work, he finally rolled groggily off the bed. He sat on the edge, rubbing his gritty eyes with a tired hand. When he'd finally woken up enough that he wouldn't immediately fall over, he headed for his shower. He let the warm water wash over him for several moments, resting his head on one of the shower walls. He finally pulled himself out when the water turned cold.

After he'd changed into fresh clothes, he sauntered into the kitchen in search of something edible. As always, everything in the fridge was his. Kari's portion consisted of a tiny jar of expired ketchup and some moldy cheese. Shrugging in resignation, Takeru poured himself a bowl of cereal and sat down at the dining room table.

Kari was nowhere in sight, but Takeru spotted an opened newspaper in the middle of the table. He pulled it towards him, noticing that it was opened to a photo featuring the club from the previous night. He scanned the article quickly, relieved to find that neither he nor his friends were mentioned. Strangely enough, neither were the girls. You'd think that somebody would have said something, he mused. After all, they were the ones that saved everybody.

As soon as he finished his meal, Takeru meandered into the living room in search of something to occupy his mind. As he'd expected, he didn't find any suitable reading materials. Thinking that Kari might have something in her room, he tiptoed down the hallway toward her bedroom. He wondered idly if she were sleeping, but found that the bedroom door was open. Takeru slipped inside, glancing around for his roommate as he did.  
  
He'd been expecting her room to be decorated similarly to the rest of the apartment, so he wasn't prepared for the sight that met his eyes. She still had the inevitable crystal and crème decor, as well as the same huge, four-poster bed. There was still a large rug on the floor, and a gigantic dresser similar to his own. Unlike in his room, though, her desk was piled high with video game boxes. He peered curiously at them, surprised to see that they were all Digimon games (). He shrugged. He hadn't taken his roommate for a Digimon junkie. Curiosity overcoming common sense, he pulled open some of her desk drawers. Inside, Takeru found dozens of different types of Digimon merchandise, including pencils, rolled up posters of some strange cat with gloves, and even an authentic-looking pink divice.  
  
Takeru rifled through the contents of her desk for a few more minutes, thinking ruefully that Kari's obvious obsession with Digimon, particularly the strange cat took her far beyond a mere junkie. The extent of her obsession was almost scary.  
  
Takeru heard the front door slamming, and voices filled the hallway. He slipped from Kari's room, careful to leave no trace of his presence. He slipped into his own room, hiding behind his bed. His caution was rewarded as his bedroom door creaked open, and a brunette head peered inside. Kari shut the door behind her, calling loudly, "He's not here, guys!" Kari's footsteps receded towards the living room, and Takeru breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
Deciding that he didn't want to face her just yet, Takeru settled into an overstuffed chair with a book. He didn't know Kari's friends well enough to distinguish individual voices, but he could pick out Kari's. She was making an awful lot of noise in the kitchen and bathroom cabinets, shouting hysterically for mouthwash. "Argh!" she cried. "How can I not have mouthwash?! I've got to get the taste of that guy out of my mouth or I'll never be able to eat again!"  
  
An exasperated voice muttered, "Not eating has never been an issue for you, Hika. You're almost as bad as Yolie." The front door slammed, and another voice yelled angrily, "I heard that, Jade!"  
  
Kari squealed, and Takeru heard her footsteps running for the front door. "Bless you, Yolie!" There was a pause, and Takeru could hear her rummaging through what could only have been a brown paper grocery sack. "Look what this angel brought, guys! Mouthwash!" she cooed triumphantly. A second later, Takeru heard her slam the bathroom door. He cringed as Kari started to gargle and spit noisily. The gargling continued for several long moments. He heard Kari emerge again, and then Yolie's voice protested, "Hey, this bottle is empty! You weren't supposed to use all of it, Hika!"  
  
"I'm just sorry that I ran out. Besides, you weren't the one that slime ball kissed. I swear, he must have been drinking rancid milk before he came to the bar." Several sets of feet plodded down the hall to the kitchen, and Takeru heard the refrigerator door being repeatedly slammed. There goes all of my food, he scowled. "Hey, there's some really good stuff in here, Kari! Where'd it all come from? You never go to the grocery store."  
  
Kari's voice piped up. "Must be Taki's," she guessed. "Don't touch it. He gets really mad when people mess with his stuff." Takeru suppressed a relieved sigh. She'd learned that much, at least, though she hadn't yet learned to apply that lesson to her own actions.  
  
"But I'm hungry!" whined Yolie. Obviously ignoring their friend's high- pitched complaint, a fourth voice cut in. "I have an idea! When's your next photo shoot, Hika?"  
  
"Not for a couple of days. I'm supposed to be doing a perfume ad, but the people in charge are having problems booking just the right site, so they postponed it. Why? Have you got something that you want to do instead, Cathy?"  
  
Cathy's voice was thoughtful. "Well, we haven't gotten together with just our group in a long time. Why don't we have a party?" Four voices cheered. "How about tomorrow?" inquired Jade.  
  
"Nah, I've got a hot date tomorrow," said Kari. "Why not just have it here, tonight? We can invite the Outers, Mimi and Matt, too." The girls groaned at the mention of Kari's upcoming date, and Cathy finally asked in irritation, "What about your date tonight, Hika? Are you willing to cancel that?"  
  
Kari's voice was dismissive. She was obviously used to their teasing. "Sure. It's just one of the guys from the arcade. I can't even remember his name." The groans were even louder this time. "I'd hate to be your date, Hika. Those poor boys."  
  
"Come on, Jade, it's not like I'm ever serious about any of them, anyway. 'Sides, they have as much fun as I do." Takeru heard several chairs scraping against the kitchen floor. "Okay, guys. We'll meet back here in a couple of hours. Oh, and Yolie? Bring some more mouthwash, will you?" Kari's voice was wistful. "I can still taste him."  
  
The other girls left, and Takeru heard Kari going into her bedroom. A few minutes later, he heard water running. Kari made a little more noise, and the Jacuzzi tub kicked on. Deciding that Kari was going to be awhile, Takeru deemed it safe to leave his room.  
  
He hesitated in the living room, wondering whether he should wait for Kari to come out or just take off on his own. His need for answers had abated considerably, though he was still curious about where she'd picked up her odd skills. She must have taken martial arts or something, he mused. That's all it is.  
  
He sauntered into the living room, deciding to wait for Kari, after all. He wandered around for a few minutes, straightening the few items that Kari's friends had disturbed. When the room was spotless once more, Takeru wandered over to the painting on the mantle.  
  
As he approached the painting, his heart automatically started to beat a little faster. He stared at the city in the painting for a long moment, waiting in vain for the sensations he'd experienced that first time. When they didn't come, Takeru was almost disappointed. Granted, those sensations hadn't exactly been pleasant, but they'd left him with a strong desire for more. Maybe, just maybe, some of the answers that he sought for his own mysteries lay in the painting's images.  
  
When nothing happened, Takeru stepped even closer. He was now near enough that by simply stretching out one arm, he'd be able to touch the surface. Unable to stop himself, he did just that. His heart skipped a beat as his fingers touched the painting, and he chided himself for expecting something momentous to happen. Still, he didn't draw his fingers away immediately. In spite of his better judgment, he was intrigued by the feel of the canvas under his fingers. Most paintings are rough, marked by the layers of paint placed upon them. This artwork, however, was as smooth as glass. Takeru wasn't exactly an art critic, but he knew that this was unusual. Still, he didn't think that the image on the canvas was computer generated. It was too lifelike, too real, to have been created by anything except a true artist and brush.  
  
As he ran his fingers along the surface, a particularly bright spot of paint caught his eye. This bright swatch of paint was set in the heart of the city, and he could have sworn that it hadn't been there before. He leaned closer, wondering how he could possibly have missed such a colorful splash of red. His fingers brushed the red, and Takeru suddenly felt incredibly dizzy. He tried to pull his fingers away, guessing that the painting was responsible, but they were glued to the canvas. He closed his eyes, trying desperately to fight the nausea. He collapsed as the wave of dizziness overcame him.  
  
Someone was slapping his face hard enough to give him bruises. Takeru waved the person's hand away, trying desperately to open his eyes. He felt as though his eyelids were weighted down with lead, but he eventually managed to crack them open.  
  
A child with bright blonde hair was staring down at him, worry clear in his blue-colored eyes. Takeru grunted and sat up, and the boy backed nervously away. Takeru stared at the child, wondering briefly why he seemed so frightened. TK glanced down at himself. He wasn't that scary, was he?  
Realizing that something else must have frightened the child, Takeru stood slowly. His body was stiff, almost as though he'd been lying on the ground for many hours. He still wore the same clothes, but they were now smeared with dirt and grime.

He looked around, knowing instinctively that he wasn't anywhere near his apartment. He was standing in an abandoned courtyard, outside a building that must once have been very beautiful. Now, though, the air was thick with dust, and not even a blade of grass grew between the smooth cobblestones. Half of the building was torn down, and the fountain in the center was a smoking ruin. Rubble was scattered everywhere, and, for a moment, he feared that he was experiencing something similar to the events that had brought him to Tokyo in the first place.  
  
As Takeru shook off his confusion, he noticed that the boy was beckoning furiously. Takeru followed the child into a shadowed corner of the courtyard, though he still didn't see anything that could make the boy shake so. As he came near enough to the child to hear his frenzied breathing, something whistled through the air over their heads. Takeru looked into the sky, startled to see something that looked a lot like a comet. The sizzling comet left a trail of black smoke behind it, and Takeru felt a rush of pity for the people that lay in its path. The fiery rock was at least the size of Takeru himself, and it would inevitably cause a lot of damage.  
  
Strangely enough, Takeru didn't hear the comet land. Odd, he thought in alarm. I should have heard that thing crash. Takeru turned back to the child, hoping to get some answers. His eyes widened when he saw that the boy had disappeared. As more comets sped through the air above him, Takeru edged slowly into the corridor. If he could find the boy, he might learn where he was.  
  
Takeru slid into the cool darkness, pressing his hands against the smooth walls to keep from tripping. He was a little unsettled by the fact that the walls were the same incomprehensibly smooth texture as the painting back in the apartment.

Just when Takeru was ready to turn back and find another route, a small hand latched onto his wrist. Takeru jumped, shaking the hand off as quickly as he could. A light flared in the darkness, and Takeru shielded his eyes with one hand. When his eyes finally adjusted, Takeru could see a set of semi-familiar topaz eyes. The child whispered something in a language that Takeru didn't understand, and pointed to a grate at the base of a wall. As the child scuttled over to the grate, Takeru finally understood what the boy was trying to say. The boy kept speaking, but Takeru merely shook his head to show that he didn't understand the words. The child sighed, and gestured that Takeru was to help him remove the grate. Takeru knelt beside the boy, and together they dragged the heavy bit of metal away.  
  
The boy handed the lamp to Takeru, and then dropped into the hole. That tiny hand crept back out, grabbing the lamp. As the light faded into the hole, Takeru thought that he heard footsteps coming from the direction of the courtyard. His first impulse was to go to the footsteps, but something held him back. The footsteps were too loud and too rhythmic to be anything but a military unit, and TK had the feeling that he didn't want anything to do with them. He slipped into the hole.  
  
He fell for a few feet, landing with a bone-jarring thud on harsh concrete. As he straightened, he realized that there were people all around him. Several of them held lamps, but others carried crude sticks and similar weapons. Several of these men kept their weapons pointed at him, though Takeru knew they were not a true threat to his safety. These strange men held their sticks too loosely, and they obviously didn't know how to use them. Several of them actually looked afraid of Takeru. From their expressions, Takeru knew that they didn't really want to hurt him. Without understanding the source of his knowledge, Takeru suddenly realized that these men were farmers and artisans, not killers or soldiers. His fear of them evaporated as quickly as if it had never been.  
  
As the sounds of the army came closer, several of the more brawny men pulled the grate back into place. It slid into its socket just as dozens of steel-tipped boots entered the alley. Along with the other men in the tunnel, Takeru held his breath until the soldiers passed. As soon as the threat was gone, Takeru looked to the boy for further instructions. The child just shrugged and pointed to one of the adults, a man with more cunning and less fear on his face than any of the others. This man gave a single, curt nod, and held his fingers to his lips. He then turned and walked into the darkness. The other men followed immediately, but Takeru hesitated. These men were obviously rebels, and Takeru didn't really want to get involved with whatever war they were fighting.

As the last man disappeared, the child latched onto one of Takeru's hands. The boy pulled insistently on his arm, but still Takeru held back. The boy lifted his lamp, and Takeru stared into those tawny eyes. This boy has seen too much for a child of his years, Takeru thought in disgust. Whoever did this to him is a monster. Sighing at his own weakening, Takeru allowed the child to pull him away from the grate.  
  
The child did not release Takeru's hand for a very long while. After a time, Takeru realized that the darkness wasn't quite so deep. If he squinted, he could just make out a light up ahead. The light was far too steady to be just another lamp, and Takeru felt his spirits lifting. Something about this tunnel had been too familiar, too oppressing. It was too much like the eternal darkness in the red-eyed witch's caves.  
  
Takeru shook his head suddenly, trying to dislodge the rest of that half-memory. Another clue to that lost year, he thought tiredly. I just wish I could remember the rest. Of course, I might be sorry that I did remember when the memories come back.  
  
Takeru glanced down at the boy beside him. He truly hated the look in the child's eyes. It was too much like Kari's after the fight in the bar. It was the look of someone who had lost his innocence, someone who had lost hope. Involuntarily, Takeru clutched the child's hand more tightly.  
  
Within a few minutes, Takeru realized that the light was, indeed, getting brighter. TK and his companions emerged from the tunnel into a large, underground room. This room was only dimly lit, as if the people feared discovery even here. As he glanced around, Takeru saw that he was surrounded by literally thousands of people, all of whom had that bright blond hair. He wondered idly if they dyed their hair, or if the color was natural.  
  
The child released Takeru as several big men pushed him into the center of the room. As his guards led him forward, Takeru could hear a single voice rising above the general cacophony. He still could not understand what was being said, but he was able to pick out the words 'digidestines' and 'Digital world'. Both words were issued repeatedly, and the crowd murmured them amongst themselves like a prayer.

After several more moments, the crowd hushed. Several people turned to look at him, faces hostile. Takeru was pushed forward once more, and the people parted to let him through. He was shoved onto a platform where a group of official-looking men waited. Takeru was grateful to notice that the officials, at least, weren't so openly aggressive.  
  
As Takeru finished mounting the dais, the people around him started shouting questions. Takeru just regarded them all with a blank look, and eventually they quieted. One of the men standing by him, an older man whose brown hair was streaked with white, came over to him. He murmured something in his own language, watching Takeru's bewildered expression. Finally, he nodded to himself, and then pointed to the floor. "Digital world," he said, obviously expected Takeru to understand. "Digital world," the man repeated.  
  
As Takeru continued to look at him in confusion, the man gestured to a member of the crowd. The new person, a younger man with just the beginnings of a beard, carried some kind of chart with him. He handed the chart to the official, who spread it out at Takeru's feet. Takeru stared at it, wondering why he was being shown a map of the world, or was it the world.  
  
Takeru knelt, gazing hard at the map. His shrewd blue eyes took in the exquisite detailing, the colorful letters. Unlike the maps Takeru had seen in school, this chart showed mountain ranges, lakes, rivers, and even what appeared to be major cities and roadways that should have been completely bare. Takeru stared at the official, wondering why somebody would bother doing such a thing. It's not like I don't know any better, though Takeru in annoyance.  
  
Once more, the official pointed to the ground, saying "Digital world." He then pointed to one of the planets, repeating the same word. "Digital World." Deciding that this guy was crazy and needed to be humored, Takeru pointed to Earth. The man nodded, and then addressed the crowd. Whatever he said appeased the restless people, and most of them lost their hostility.  
  
The official gestured to yet another man, who started to come forward. The brunette child that had found him in the first place suddenly shouted something, and the man hesitated. The child said something else, and the official waved him away with a dismissive hand. Taking the official's dismissal as permission to approach, the child scurried up to Takeru, grabbing his hand in a familiar gesture. The child pulled Takeru back through the crowd, though the people did not let him pass this time. They seemed to think that he was no longer a threat, so they weren't willing to give him extra space.  
  
The child led TK through yet another tunnel, though this was not the same one they had entered by. In a tiny cavern just a few feet from the main room, Takeru found a young man huddled over a table. Scattered across the table were literally dozens of tiny machines. Takeru blinked, having a hard time reconciling this place of refugees and darkness with these obviously advance mechanical devices.  
  
The young man looked up as they entered, and the boy started speaking again. The man stared shrewdly at Takeru the entire time, and then he sighed and picked up a crescent shaped bit of metal. He made some adjustments on the metal with an equally tiny tool, and then approached Takeru. Takeru jerked back involuntarily, and the man said something else to the boy. The child shrugged and spouted off a stream of incoherent sentences. Surprise flitted across the man's face as the boy repeatedly mentioned Earth.  
  
Finally, the child reached out and grabbed Takeru's hand once more. The man held up his own hand, signaling that Takeru was to remain still. Takeru nodded tersely, and the man slid the device onto TK's ear. Takeru felt a little sting of pressure against his skin, but this sensation quickly passed. He tentatively felt the device with one hand, relieved to discover that the thing wasn't hurting him in any way.  
  
As the boy and the man continued to speak to each other in that musical tongue, Takeru could have sworn that some of their words suddenly made sense. He shook his head, trying to clear his ears, but the language he was hearing continued to change. "...Toi said he was from Earth, but that he's not with those guys attacking us. What do you think, Lano?"  
  
The man, Lano, shrugged. "He doesn't seem to be too dangerous. Still, you should be careful around him, kid. We don't know anything about him or his people." Lano glanced once more at Takeru. "Unless I miss my guess, he can understand us now. What's your name, man?"  
  
Takeru continued to gape at him, but he answered quickly enough, "Takeru. Where am I?" The other man shrugged and half-laughed. "Not the most original of questions, but understandable, I suppose." He spread his arms wide, taking in everything around them. "This is the Digital World, earth- man."  
  
Takeru stared, eyes wide. "Digital World? As in the game?" The man glanced at the boy, who shrugged. The man's intense eyes took in Takeru once more, and then he smiled amicably. "Why don't you take TK here back to Toi, Doni? I'm sure they can answer each others' questions."  
  
The man waved a farewell to Takeru as he and the boy headed back to the main cavern. The difference was remarkable. Instead of just a confusing ramble of unintelligible words, Takeru could now pick out individual conversations. He felt less like an interloper now.  
  
The official was still addressing the crowd. "Please be calm!" he shouted. "Princess of Light is on her way. In the meantime, we can only hide and pray to the goddess that the enemy doesn't find us."  
  
"What if she doesn't come? What if Myotismon sends more of those comets? Our shield will only protect us from one or two more. What will we do if she doesn't come?" demanded an angry voice from the crowd. Toi spread his arms wide. "When has she ever failed us?" The official kept his expression reasonable. "She will come."  
  
The official spotted Takeru, and waved him forward. As Takeru started up the steps, one of the cavern walls exploded in a flash of sparks and rubble. Through the hole, hundreds of heavily armed men in green uniforms poured into the cavern. As the crowd started to back away, a second blast blew out the opposite wall.

They were surrounded.

Takeru and the rebels were herded back into the courtyard. They were bound together with strips of metal, and then forced to wait in the hot sun while the soldiers in green kept their weapons trained on them.  
  
As they crouched on the decimated floor, Takeru gazed at the people around him. They were frightened, of course, and they kept glancing at the sky as if they expected angels from heaven to come down to the planet to save them. Takeru thought they were incredibly foolish to rely on anybody but themselves, but he couldn't see a way out of their bonds, either.

One of the soldiers, a man to whom the others all deferred, sauntered along the line of prisoners, glancing at each face as he walked by. Takeru noticed that he gazed longest at the officials. He grunted, and then continued on. Takeru expected the soldier to pass on by without a second look, but the man unexpectedly stopped. He stared at Takeru for only an instant before gesturing furiously to another of the soldiers. The second soldier came forward, a large key in his hand. The lead soldier merely pointed to Takeru, and the man with the key quickly unlocked the chains holding him. Takeru rubbed his wrists as he was shoved forward.  
  
Takeru faced the general, seeing the fear and hatred in the man's face. Again, Takeru wondered why anyone would fear him. "Take him to the general!" barked the soldier, and Takeru was immediately loaded onto some sort of transport vehicle. He glanced over his shoulder as the car pulled away. Both the boy and the main official were staring at him with a mixture of suspicion and hope. Takeru knew they expected him to break free and somehow rescue the others. Takeru looked around, trying to find some method of escape. The soldier sitting next to him glared and pointed his weapon at Takeru's heart. Takeru looked away, knowing that the soldier would fire long before Takeru had the chance to jump off the vehicle.

The trip was short and uneventful. After only a few minutes, the vehicle pulled up to a large building that was, remarkably, still intact. Soldiers in green milled listlessly around the exterior, and they all stared at him with that same fear on their faces.  
  
As he entered the building, Takeru tried not to feel so much like a lamb being led to the slaughter. The soldier behind him kept poking him in the back with his weapon, and Takeru had to repress the urge to spin and hit the man. The soldier prodded Takeru up a long flight of marble stairs. At the top of the stairs was a door guarded prodigiously by no less than four big guards. The guards stopped Takeru, inspected him with blank faces, and then allowed him to pass. TK was shoved into a large office, richly furnished by red carpet and plush chairs. The door slammed shut behind him.  
  
As Takeru gazed around the room, he noticed that someone was sitting behind a desk in a leather chair facing the floor-to-ceiling stained glass window. The back of the chair was too high for Takeru to see anything but the pair of crossed legs clad in dark green fabric. Tired of being treated like an animal, Takeru cleared his throat rudely. He heard a sharp intake of breath, and the man in the chair stood to face his prisoner. Takeru couldn't help gasping.  
  
The man was himself.


	5. Maniacs and Discussions

CHAPTER FIVE: Maniacs and Discussions

Kari finished tying the bit of pink silk into her hair just as the doorbell rang. "I'm coming!" she yelled, pulling it open to reveal her friends. They clustered around her, enthusiastic greetings falling from their lips. She grinned at them all. As they entered, each of them handed her tiny bottles of mouthwash. She laughed, thanking them all.  
Soon enough, the party was in full swing. Kari pulled out her video games and some movies, and they ordered pizza to accompany Cathy's supply of culinary masterpieces. After they'd eaten, Mimi and Matt ran to the nearest mini-mart for smoothies. Kari's friends clustered on the balcony while Kari and Jade played the latest Digimon game.  
"Do you think Kari realizes that she won't play any better just because she's yelling like a maniac?" inquired Sora thoughtfully. Overhearing her comments, Kari called, "I do, too! It makes me feel better about what I'm doing, and then I can play well. If I didn't yell, I'd fail at the game." Taichi groaned. "She's nuts." Cathy laughed, protesting, "It sounds like perfect logic to me. I always fight better after I've had a good, long yell."  
It was Yolie's turn to groan. "That's really scary, Cathy." The blonde looked questioningly at her friend. "What is?" she asked, confused. Yolie rubbed her temple with one finger. "It's scary that you thought what Kari said just now was logic." She rolled her eyes. "That was definitely not logic." Kari's friends laughed.  
Finally, Mimi and Matt returned with the smoothies. Mimi, of course, had eaten most of them on the way back, but Matt had bought more in anticipation of her actions. He handed them out, and Kari let Yolie take over for her at the game. Within seconds, Yolie was shrieking like a maniac, and Taichi shook his head in resignation. "Great," he muttered. "There's two of them."  
Kari threaded her way out to the balcony, smoothie in hand. "Sora? 'Chi? Can I talk to you guys?" They nodded. "What do you want to talk about, Hika?" asked Sora curiously. Kari slid the glass door shut behind her, almost blocking out Yolie's yells of outrage as yet another of her game-people died.  
Kari watched through the glass for a moment, and then turned to the two Outers. "It's about the fight at the bar..." She stopped, leaning dejectedly over the railing as she sipped her drink. "We already took care of the witnesses, Hika," Sora said as she leaned next to the tiny girl.  
Kari shook her head. "It's not that," she said. When she didn't continue, Taichi jumped in. "Is it about that Takeru guy? I don't think you have to worry about him, either. He'll probably just dismiss it. Most people do," he added thoughtfully.  
Once again, Kari shook her head. "Nah, he didn't seem to care. I just..." She paused again, taking a deep breath before she explained. "I've never killed before," she stated softly. "Not like that. Not a human being."  
Taichi nodded softly, exchanging a meaningful glance with her partner. "Ah," Sora murmured. "That's what this is about." Kari nodded slowly. "I've destroyed evil digi-robots, but they aren't alive, anyway. I've also helped Mimi take out people like Kaizers, but he was just plain evil and didn't give us a choice. Still, I've never killed a regular human. That bouncer didn't stand a chance against my reflexes."  
Sora turned to Kari, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "If it makes you feel any better, I've never killed either." Kari glanced at her brown-haired friend, surprised. "Never? But I thought..." She trailed off, and Sora laughed. "You think that we're as hardened as one can get, right? Our enemies were always like yours. We've never had to kill a natural being."  
Kari looked over at Taichi. "What about you, Tai? Have you ever killed?" Taichi rested his elbows along the balcony railing. "Once," he answered quietly, and Sora protested, "You never told me anything about it."  
Taichi cocked his head slightly. "You never asked, and I didn't feel that you needed to know. It was before I knew what we were. Besides, the guy was scum. He attacked a woman in a parking lot, and I pulled him off. I didn't yet know my own strength, and I threw him against a wall. His skull was crushed when his head hit the pavement. I still don't like to talk about it."  
Kari nodded, intending to drop the subject, but Taichi started to speak once more. "Kari, that guy you shot brought it on himself. He made the decision for you when he attacked your guy. If you'd had a choice, you wouldn't have hurt him, so you're not a killer. Yes, your powers and history tend to make you more violent than the average person, but you're still not a murderer. Don't worry about it, okay?" Kari nodded, murmuring a soft "Thank you" as she slipped back inside. Yolie made room for her in front of the video game.  
Sora watched her go, and then murmured to Taichi, "I always feel so badly for them. They're completely confused." Taichi nodded. "Yeah," he agreed gruffly. "They keep having to reconcile their past lives with this one. They've lost everything, and they don't know how to get it back."  
Sora slipped her hand into Taichi's. "We have each other, but they don't even remember their soul-mates." She paused. "Do you think Kari realizes who Takeru is?" Taichi shook his head gently. "No, she doesn't have a clue. It's part of the magic, that we can't recognize each other. I've noticed that a lot of people react in the same way. You can sit a person down and show them a Desetine, and then show them the same Destine in normal clothes, and the person won't make the connection. It's like their minds prevent them from connecting the dots, and they just slip right over the similarities." She sighed. "Kari and Takeru don't recognize each other, but I think they still feel the same way, deep down."  
Sora laughed suddenly. "Yes, I've noticed that, too. They're acting the same as when they first met. Takeru can't stand Kari, and she's totally oblivious to his hints." She grinned. "They'll get together eventually. We just have to be patient and not tell her anything, let them figure it out on their own." Taichi nodded. "It'll be interesting, to say the least."  
  
As Takeru finished his narrative, the large kitchen clock in Davis's apartment chimed the midnight hour. He'd been talking for hours, telling his three friends about his adventure in the painting. He leaned against the tiny kitchen table, waiting for some sign that his friends were still alive.  
Takeru groaned as three sets of eyes stared disbelievingly into his. He glanced at each of his companion's faces, noting the looks of we-know-he's- gone-insane-but-we-can't-decide-how-to-tell-him resting on their faces. Davis frowned at his yellow-haired friend, protesting with a wave of his arm, "This is nuts, Tk. People don't get sucked into paintings, and they certainly don't see aliens floating away in giant bubbles. Your story is completely crazy."  
Takeru lifted a sculpted eyebrow. "More crazy than four men disappearing for a year and then waking up in a frozen wasteland without any memory of how they got there?" Davis scratched his head, shrugging in reluctant agreement. "Uh...no, I guess not."  
Takeru rolled his eyes. "Look," he said, "I don't know what happened. The only thing that I'm sure of is that I had more flashbacks while I was in that city than I've had in all the years since we came here. Whatever happened, I think those paintings may just hold the key to our disappearances. We have to find them."  
Willis leaned back in his chair, his green eyes thoughtful. "You know, assuming that Tk wasn't simply hallucinating, this isn't a bad idea. We've searched all over Tokyo, and we haven't found a single thing that would lead us to our past. We came here, thinking that there was some connection to what happened to us, but nobody in the city is willing to talk about those monsters attacking Tokyo. Now that the attacks have stopped completely, no one wants to acknowledge that they ever happened in the first place. It's just our bad luck that the attacks stopped completely before we could find anything significant. On the other hand, Tk keeps mentioning the "light" of the digidestines. That name sounds awfully familiar."  
Davis also adopted a thoughtful expression. Takeru stared at his brown-haired friend, alarmed beyond words. Davis had exceptional brains, but he wasn't really a thinker. Takeru was almost afraid that he'd hurt himself. Finally, though, Davis glanced up, an excited light in his brown eyes. "I remember!" he shouted, running out of the kitchen. The others quickly followed Davis into the living room, where he'd already switched on his tiny computer. "I've been reading the back issues of all the major Tokyo newspapers. There's an entire section on the Digidestines. I'm pretty certain there were several articles on the one who brings "light", too."  
He typed for a few minutes, trying to find the right article. Finally, he read triumphantly from the screen. "Here it is. This article is dated from about eight years ago." He peered closely at the words. "A school bus was attacked one afternoon by some kind of monster. Since the only eyewitnesses were really little kids, the descriptions aren't clear. It seems like each kid embellished on the original story."  
"Get to the point, Dave," Willis snapped. "What about the "light" gal?" Davis made a face. "I was coming to that," he protested. Takeru forcibly grabbed Willis's wrist before the other man could smack Davis upside the head. With a warning from Takeru, Davis turned back to the screen.  
"One little girl kept mentioning a destined with an angel. And I quote, "She was so pretty. She was really strong, too. She saved us from that bad monster. She's my hero!'"  
Takeru blinked. "How, exactly, is this helpful, Davis?" he inquired with deceptive calm. Davis shrugged. "At least we know that she exists. Otherwise, I'd be tempted to think that you're just crazy." The other three men groaned and returned to the kitchen. Takeru flopped into a chair, body sagging dejectedly. Willis sat next to him, still looking thoughtful. "Okay, ignoring that pointless article, we can all accept that Tk wasn't just hallucinating, right?" The other two nodded. "What else can we get from this?" he continued, following his line of thought.  
Ken stared up at the ceiling, stroking his chin with a careful hand. "That girl of yours said that her painting was just one part of a set, right?" Takeru nodded, though he couldn't help but add the rider, "She isn't my girl." Ken ignored him, though the others gave him knowing smiles. Takeru rolled his eyes, continuing, "She said the entire set was a gift from some girl, but I can't remember the name of the artist. I do recall, however, that each of her friends had one."  
Ken glanced back at his blue-eyed friend. "We need to track down the other pieces of the set. Perhaps your experience was just a fluke, but we can still see what happens with the others. Does anyone have any ideas on how to find them or the artist?" They all shook their heads, so Takeru shrugged in resignation. "I'll just have to ask that silly girl about them." He leaned forward, letting his head thud against the table. "I can't deal with her tonight. I'll ask her in the morning. Oh, and Davis?" Davis blinked, but Takeru didn't lift his head. "Stop grinning. Kari and I aren't like that." Davis continued to grin unrepentantly.The next morning, Takeru prepared himself for a lengthy and confusing conversation with 'The Ditz'. When the next morning arrived, however, Takeru only found an empty apartment and the remains of a party. He glanced around in disgust, gingerly picking his way past discarded pizza boxes and dirty plates. In spite of the mess, he couldn't repress a half- smile as he noticed the bottles of mouthwash stacked haphazardly on a low coffee table.  
His smile faded as he looked up at the painting, still residing in benign splendor on the mantle. Takeru hesitated, and then walked over to it. Nervously, he stretched out a finger towards the canvas. He licked his lips, fighting the urge to close his eyes as his finger encountered the surface. When nothing happened, his breath exploded from his lungs in a gasp of mingled relief and disappointment.  
He pulled his hand back, heading for Kari's room. Once again, the door was open. He peeked inside, and another wave of disgust washed over him. She's such a pig, he thought in annoyance. How can she live like this? Piles of rumpled clothing were scattered haphazardly around the room. Takeru could barely see the floor. Takeru would not have been surprised to learn that a tornado had somehow blasted through Kari's bedroom. Shutting the door behind him as he left, Takeru shook his head. He sighed and went back to the living room. It's amazing that we don't have more conflicts, he thought. She's so unlike me.  
He wandered over to the couch, flinging himself down with a sigh of exasperation. He was just drifting off to sleep when the phone began to ring. Takeru rolled off the couch, trying to find the cordless before the ringing stopped. He searched through the mess in vain, grunting in irritation as the ringing stopped and the answering machine kicked on. "Hi, this is Kari and Takeru's place. Call back if you're a cute guy. Otherwise, just leave a message and we'll get back to you as soon as we can!" Kari's golden voice ended in a cheerful laugh, and he could just picture her laughing her head off as she recorded the message.  
He gave up on his search for the phone, waiting patiently for the caller to leave a message. His eyes flickered in surprise as Kari's voice came on once again. "Hey, Taki, it's just me. My photographer finally came through, and I had to leave really early for the shoot. I should be back sometime tonight or tomorrow. Do me a favor and feed Nico, will you? His food is in the cupboard under the sink. Thanks a ton!" Message finished, the machine clicked off. Takeru cut himself off before he could sigh yet again.Kari fell out of bed as her alarm shrilled loudly. She groaned, rubbing her aching back as she dragged herself to her feet. This is the last time I do a shoot in the middle of the night, she vowed rashly. I'm completely exhausted. Why couldn't they just put me in a dark room and pretend that it was nighttime? I know that I'd be much happier. Grabbing the first set of unwrinkled clothing that she came across, Lari headed for her shower.  
Twenty minutes later, she still wasn't ready for class. She felt as though she was walking through water, and she wasn't even remotely ready for the English midterm that she had first thing that morning. At least I won't be the only one to fail, she mused tiredly. Mimi's in the class with me.  
Glancing at her watch, Kari realized just how late she really was. She grabbed her purse, searching desperately for the keys to her car. Panicking slightly, she skidded towards the kitchen. "Taki!" she screeched. "I can't find my keys! Can you give me a ride to..." She stopped as she noticed the three semi-strangers gathered around her kitchen table. Takeru glanced up as she entered, his hand poised carefully over the strategy game spread out over the table. "Hello," she greeted, bowing slightly before turning her attention back to Takeru. "Taki, I'm really, really late for class. Can you give me a ride?"  
She didn't listen to the snickers coming from the brunette with the brown eyes as Takeru nodded. She smiled gratefully at him, dashing past him in search of something to eat on the run. She didn't find anything, but as she turned back around, she noticed that Takeru was holding something in front of her. Seeing that he held a breakfast bar, she grinned again. He just rolled his eyes and gestured for her to follow him to the parking garage across the street.  
Kari munched on her granola bar as she raced to catch up with Takeru. He ignored her as he headed for his motorcycle. He climbed on the back of the sleek vehicle, pulling his helmet over his blonde hair. She hesitated, but he tossed his spare helmet at her. She pulled it on, swinging her leg over the sleek black surface. She wrapped her arms around his waist, shutting her eyes tightly as the engine sputtered to life. "Uh...can you not hold me so tightly?" asked Takeru politely. "You're cutting off my circulation." Kari relaxed her hold imperceptivity, and Takeru pushed away from the garage. Kari whispered something, but Takeru couldn't hear over the roar of the wind. "What was that?" he asked. Kari lifted her face. "I HATE MOTORCYCLES!" she shouted. She buried her helmeted face in his back as he laughed.

With Kari pointing the way, they reached the university within a few short moments. Kari dragged herself away from the bike, pulling the helmet off her head. She blew her bright, windblown hair from her eyes, smoothing it down with a weary hand. "Thanks...I think." He shrugged. "Don't mention it," he muttered. "I do have a question, though," he started. She turned to him, eyebrows lifted expectantly. "Can you tell me--"His words were cut off as a second, flamboyantly red motorcycle roared into place beside them. A pink-haired girl detached herself from the bike, smiling lovingly at the man driving. "Thanks, muffin," she murmured as they hugged the driver tightly. She glanced up, and Takeru recognized the pinky from the bar. "Oh, hello, Kari," the pinky greeted cheerfully. "Hi, Mimi," Kari returned, attention still focused on Takeru.  
The man on the red bike grunted. "Have you forgotten something, Pinky?" he inquired fondly. She blinked in confusion. "What?" she asked. The man chuckled, though Takeru could not see his face through the dark visor. "Your test," the man called 'Muffin' murmured. Mimi squealed again, latching onto Karis wrist. "Oh, no! We're going to be late! Bye, muffin!" she called as she dragged Kari away. "I'll talk to you later, Taki," Kari tossed over her shoulder as she was pulled away.

Takeru glanced at his watch for the ten-thousandth time. The sun was already setting, and Kari still hadn't returned. He didn't know her schedule, of course, but he doubted that a single class could have kept her so late. She must have gone somewhere else, he thought in irritation. Finally, he stormed over to the refrigerator, looking for the number of that maddening girl's cellular phone. After a few minutes of searching, he finally spotted the tiny, yellow post-it on the side of the fridge. Bright, pink ink proclaimed the number of Kari's cell in large, capital letters. Takeru yanked the bit of paper off, taking it back with him into the living room. He dialed the number, and was quickly rewarded by a muffled, "'Lo?"  
"Kari?" he asked, unaware that he was addressing her by her actual name for the first time in their acquaintance. "Taki? Is that you?" she asked in that strangely muted tone. "Where are you?" he grunted. "I need to speak with you." There was a long pause on the other end of the line, and then Kari muttered something that he couldn't quite make out. He only understood the words, "Crown Arcade," and "brain hurts." The dial tone cut off his next reply, and Takeru sighed again. He redialed, but Kari didn't answer her phone again. Takeru groaned and pulled out a phone book. From Kari's voice, she obviously wasn't in any condition to come home. He'd have to go and fetch her himself if he wanted answers.  
Having located the address of Kari's arcade in the phone directory, Takeru once again climbed onto his bike. He pulled up to the curb in front of a small building flamboyantly labeled with the name of the arcade. He pushed past several chattering school children, letting his eyes adjust to the dim lighting inside. He glanced around, finally spotting Keri. The brunette was perched on a bar stool, head buried in her arms.  
Takeru approached wearily, wondering if Kari was crying. He sat next to her, realizing as he came closer that she was fast asleep. "Kari," he called as he nudged her with his elbow. She didn't respond, so he pushed harder. "Leave the poor girl alone," commanded an angry voice from behind the counter. Takeru glanced across the bar at the young blonde glaring accusingly at him. "She had a really rough night, and then those idiots she works for made her do a second shoot after her class today. She's exhausted." The girl looked him up and down, and then demanded, "Who are you, anyway?"  
Takeru glared back at her, and the girl cringed and stepped away from his icy gaze. "I'm her roommate." The blonde blinked at him, glancing quickly at Kari's still form. "All right, then," she said slowly. "You can take her home." She turned to Kari, prodding her much more roughly than Takeru had. "Hika, you need to wake up. Come on, girl." Kari smiled slightly in her sleep and mumbled something under her breath. Fed up, Takeru leaned over and shouted in her ear, "WAKE UP!"  
Kari jerked awake and promptly fell off her stool. She glared sleepily up at him, and then shuffled to her feet. Sighing profoundly, she stumbled towards the exit. "Bye, Kari!" called the blonde as Takeru followed, and Kari lifted a sagging hand in farewell.  
Takeru walked over to his motorcycle, fully expecting Kari to follow. She didn't. Instead, she headed for the crosswalk. Takeru glared after her, wondering if she was trying to make a point. His eyes widened as Kari, ignoring the blinking red hand on the traffic light, trudged into traffic.

=) hehehehehehehe…

Make my dreams become reality push "The Button" please…


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